# Katie Read

> Buyer psychologist, AI strategist, keynote speaker, and founder of Living Persona™. Katie Read helps brands diagnose why buyers hesitate — and fix it. She has trained teams at Intel, built her own business to 7 figures in year one, and spoken internationally on buyer psychology and AI. Featured in Forbes (February 2026).

## About Katie Read

Katie Read is a 20-year clinical psychology veteran who turned her expertise toward buyer behavior. She is known as "The Buy-haviorist™" and is the founder of the Living Persona™ system — a method for building AI-powered buyer personas grounded in real psychological research.

Her core insight: most business growth stalls not because of bad products or bad marketing, but because of a **Micro-No** — a tiny friction point in the buyer's mind that has never been identified or solved. Katie uses a 16-point diagnostic called the Castle Guard Framework™ to find those friction points and fix them.

- Featured in Forbes: "How AI Is Helping Marketers Understand Human Buyer Psychology" (February 2026) — https://www.forbes.com/sites/laureldonnellan/2026/02/26/how-ai-is-helping-marketers-understand-human-buyer-psychology/
- Trained employee groups at Intel
- Built own business to 7 figures in year one
- Delivered workshops domestically and internationally
- 20 years in clinical psychology, held multiple Director-level roles

## Services

### The Castle Guard Framework™
A strategic intensive for marketing teams. A 16-point diagnostic that identifies why conversion rates stall and what to do about it. Best for brands who need to diagnose buyer friction fast and fix what's actually broken. Learn more: https://buyerpsych.com

### Living Persona™
AI customer models built on real psychology. Katie's buyer psychology system is embedded into a guardrailed AI model that answers questions as your customer, 24/7. Brands use it to activate existing research and make decisions with the buyer at the table. Learn more: https://livingpersona.com

### Speaking & Workshops
Katie speaks on buyer psychology, the Castle Guard Framework™, and the intersection of psychology and AI. Her sessions are high-energy and designed to change how teams understand buyers. Best for organizations that want psychology-backed workshops with direct business impact.

## Website Pages

- Homepage: https://katieread.com — Full overview of Katie Read, her services, and her expertise
- Consulting / Castle Guard Framework™: https://katieread.com/strategy — Detailed consulting process and deliverables
- Speaking: https://katieread.com/speaking — Speaking topics, formats, testimonials, and booking
- Privacy Policy: https://katieread.com/privacy-policy
- Terms of Use: https://katieread.com/terms-of-use
- Disclaimer: https://katieread.com/disclaimer

## Contact & Booking

- Book a discovery call: https://calendly.com/katieread/corporate-inquiry
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/katie-read-buyhavior

## Newsletter

**Buy-havior™** — A weekly buyer psychology newsletter read by 13,000+ founders, marketers, and researchers. Subscribe at https://katieread.com

## Key Concepts

- **The Buy-haviorist™**: Katie's brand identity as someone who applies behavioral science to buying behavior
- **Micro-No**: A small, often invisible friction point in the buyer's psychology that stalls purchasing decisions
- **Castle Guard Framework™**: Katie's 16-point diagnostic system for identifying and resolving buyer friction
- **Living Persona™**: A guardrailed AI model built from real customer research that can be queried as if it were the actual buyer
- **Buy-havior**: The psychological forces that drive (or block) purchasing decisions — the subject of Katie's newsletter and speaking work

## Credentials & Social Proof

- 20+ years in clinical psychology
- Multiple Director-level roles in psychology
- Trained teams at Intel ("One of the best trainings I've ever had. So efficient, impactful and applicable." — Sr Manager, Intel)
- Built own business to 7 figures in the first year
- International keynote speaker
- Featured in Forbes, February 2026